The Kia Picanto hatchback has been spotted testing in India. It could launch in India by 2019 to compete against Maruti Swift. It is based on the platform of Grand i10 and will also use the engine of the Hyundai hatchback with some mild mechanical changes.

We all know Kia Motors is debuting the Indian markets in 2019. Hyundai Motors owns a majority stake in Kia Motors so a lot of its cars will be based on Hyundai Cars. The first one to come to India will be the Kia SP Concept based Tusker, followed by Picanto and Rio. It will also launch a sub-4 meter compact SUV based on the upcoming Hyundai Carlino. Most of the cars have been revealed because they share their platforms and mechanical specs with most of the Hyundai cars. From these Kia cars, now, we have spotted the Kia Picanto while testing. The Picanto will go against Maruti Swift, Honda Brio, and Ford Figo. It will be based on the platform of Grand i10 and will also borrow its Kappa VTVT petrol and CRDi engines, but with some mild changes.

The Kia Picanto is available in a lot of Asian markets. Globally, it comes with a 1.0 Litre MPI three-cylinder petrol engine, 1.25 Litre MPI four-cylinder petrol and 1.0 Litre T-GDi turbocharged petrol. The 1-litre engine produces around 67 BHP of power and 96 Nm of torque. The more powerful one produces 84 BHP of power and 122 Nm of torque. Lastly, the turbocharged petrol chugs out 100 BHP of power and 172 Nm of torque.

However, in India, as the Kia Picanto will be similar to the Hyundai Grand i10, it will get the 1.2 Litre Kappa VTVT petrol engine and the 1.2 Litre U2 CRDi diesel engine. This engine comes mated to 5-speed manual gearbox along with an optional 4-speed Automatic transmission.

Features of the Kia Picanto could include projector headlights with LED DRLs, chrome door handles, LED rear combination lamps, keyless entry, 7-inch touchscreen infotainment system with Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, Rear Parking sensors with a camera, Electronic Stability Control, ABS with EBD and 6-airbags.

We expect the prices of the Kia Picanto to start at around Rs 5 Lakhs up to Rs 8 Lakhs. The expected launch date of the Picanto is mid-July, after the launch of Kia SP Concept based Tusker. The Picanto will compete against Maruti Swift, Tata Tiago, Ford Figo and Honda Brio.